| Committee Recommendations: Progress
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| Sessions 1998-99
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Third Report: Disability Living Allowance (HC 63) Published: 3rd February 1999
Government Reply: Cm 4307 Published: 30TH March 1999
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| Recommendation | Government Response
| Committee Response/Follow up | Further Government Action
| Notes |
| We welcome the announcement that initially the new system "will exclude DLA recipients whose cases were examined by the Benefit Integrity Project" (Paragraph 4)
| People whose cases were examined by the BIP and those groups of disabled people that were specifically excluded from the action of the BIP will not be contacted as part of the new enquiry process
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| We welcome the Government's commitment to consultation through the Disability Benefits Forum and "to continue working closely with disabled people and their organisations to make sure that appropriate arrangements are put in place" (paragraph 5)
| The Government will continue this dialogue (with the DBF and disability organisations), which is very valuable, and will involve other groups such as employers, in future discussions.
| | The work of the Disability Benefits Forum has now ended. However, this does not mean that the Department no longer consults. Officials continue to meet representatives of organisations of and for disabled people to discuss ways to improve the administration of benefits for disabled people so as to ensure that decisions about entitlement are right at the outset and remain correct.
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| The Government should consult with as wide a range of disability organisations as possible to ensure that the needs of disabled people are understood fully (paragraph 5)
| The Government believes in working in partnership with businesses, the voluntary sector, and with individuals. Above all, the Government is working with disability organisations so that the position of disabled people in society is improved, and thy can live fulfilling and independent lives.
| | The Government will continue it's dialogue with disability organisations through working groups focused on specific issues affecting sick and disabled people.
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| We welcome the fact that the new process "will be evaluated after six months of operation and the findings used to continue to improve he process to make it more sensitive to the circumstances of the individual contacted". We recommend that the evaluation process should include consultation with those affected and that it's findings should be published (paragraph 7)
| The enquiry action will be monitored and evaluated after the first six months of operation. The findings will be made public and, in consultation with representatives of, and for, disabled people, used to improve the process.
The Government intends to continue to involve representatives of, and for, disabled people as the new process develop, seeking experienced advice and comment from those who are in touch with disabled claimants.
| | The new process of making periodic enquiries into current entitlement began on 14th June, following detailed consultation with organisations of and for disabled people. Consultation will continue as the new process takes effect and monitoring data becomes available. In particular, consultation is continuing about the best way in which people with a mental health problem might be contacted and what special considerations should be applied to cases involving a disabled child. An initial evaluation will take place early in the New Year.
Update 2000
The six month evaluation report has now been published in the Libraries of the Commons and the Lords and has been discussed with organisations representing disabled people.
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| We recommend that the needs of disabled people with sensory disabilities and the needs of people for whom English is an additional language should be addressed in the arrangements for a new system of checking DLA claims (paragraph 8)
| DLA and AA literature also offers the assistance of the Benefits Agency, who routinely provide interpreters for other languages (including sign language) when required, at a visit or interview. There is also a translation service to help people for whom English is a second language complete the claim form. DLA and AA claim forms are available in Braille format, large print or on audiocassette and these are provided on request. The complexity of the DLA claim pack and any questionnaires developed to enquire into current circumstances do not, however, lend themselves easily to written translation without the risk of the message being lost.
Improvements are being, and have been, made to the provision of leaflets in other languages as part of than ongoing programme and steps are being taken to examine the possibility of producing literature in languages other than English and Welsh. Services for those with sensory disabilities will, of course, continue to be improved.
| | The requirement for literature in languages other than English or Welsh will form part of the evaluation of the new enquiry process following six months of operation.
Update 2000
The six month evaluation report identified that the process is generally working well. However, the evaluation found that there were some parts of the process that were more difficult to access for those with visual impairments. The Benefits Agency is considering what improvements can be made as a result.
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| We recommend that once estimates of costs and savings have been made they should be made public, showing the likely reduction in savings and increase in administration (paragraph 13).
| There will be additional administrative costs as the new enquiry process develops, along with the initial testing of improvements to the gateways onto DLA and the gathering of evidence. The changes are not savings driven, and the Government has made it clear that the main objective is to ensure that benefit is being paid properly. The effect of the new process on programme spending will be factored into the expenditure forecasts in the normal way.
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| We recommend that the Government should make it clear that the new system will mot be focussed on fraud. Any future initiative based on suspected fraud in DLA should be separate as far as is practicable from the new arrangements for checking claims (paragraph 14).
| The Government id committed to safeguarding all benefits against abuse. If a check reveals a problem, it would be wrong not to look into it further. To help achieve this aim, new claiming and review processes will include standard security checks on identity and medical corroboration of the nature of the claimant's disability - checks that may result in investigations taking place. In this way prevention of fraud and error will be an integral part of the claiming and checking processes. The Government is fully aware of the need to carry out all investigations sensitively and tactfully.
| | The new process of making periodic enquiries into current entitlement is all about getting entitlement right and ensuring it remains right. It is not targeted at fraud but, if situations are uncovered that appear to be fraudulent, the cases will be referred for specialist investigation in the normal way.
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| Given the specific nature of DLA and the low incidence of fraud, we recommend that the DSS should consult the National Audit Office to review the methodology and accuracy of their savings estimates in Relation to DLA.(paragraph 15).
| The Government plans to discuss the methodology of savings calculations in DLA and AA with the National Audit Office and welcomes the recommendation made by the Committee on this subject.
| | This recommendation is being progressed and is linked to the calculation of the final outcome of the BIP due later this year.
Update 2000
BIP savings methodology has been discussed with the National Audit Office.
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| We agree that the checking of all cases where there is ongoing to be a reduction or removal of the benefit is a welcome change (paragraph 17).
| The new process will incorporate lessons already learned and the safeguards developed as part of the BIP will be retained. The safeguards will ensure that no decision is made to adjust benefit, either upward or downward, on the basis of the claimant's statement alone. There will always be additional information available to the decision maker. As well as the local and national checking mechanisms currently in place the new system will carry forward existing safeguards which ensure that all cases where benefit is to be withdrawn and 10 per cent of cases where benefit is to be adjusted will be checked before the decision is notified to the claimant.
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| We endorse the Minister's aim of "making certain at the outset that the award is correct and then taking action to ensure that it remains correct" (paragraph 17)
| The Government welcomes the Committee's endorsement of the aim of "making certain at the outset that an award is correct and then taking action to ensure that it remains correct". This is a central plank of delivering an active modern service for the future.
| | These aims are incorporated in the BA's programme of work looking at ways of improving the administration of DLA and AA. The programme includes the new enquiry process, its evaluation and development, and the investigation and development of new ways of taking initial claims.
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| It is essential that the findings of the Chief Adjudication Officer's examination of the quality of decision making in BIP are taken account of in the new arrangements for checking DLA claims (paragraph 18).
| In last year's annual report the CAO indicated that he would be undertaking a special monitoring exercise in 1998/99 to look at the standard of adjudication in the BIP exercise. The findings of that special exercise will be included in the CAO's annual report, which is expected to be published later in the year. The Government is aware that the Committee has taken a keen interest in this area and early details of the study are being provided separately.
| | The Committee was provided with a separate note itemising the CAO's findings that form an annex to his latest annual report. The Chief Adjudication Officer identified the difficulties that Adjudication Officers have in correctly identifying grounds for review in DLA cases. As a result of this work a comprehensive training programme, concentrating on the areas of concern, has been delivered to adjudication staff involved in the new enquiry process. Its effectiveness will be carefully monitored.
Update 2000
Following on from the Select Committee's recommendation, extensive re-training was undertaken between July 1999 and July 2000.
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| We recommend that the Government should continue to liaise with the Disablement Income Group (DIG) and the Disability Benefits Forum on the timetable and content of the new training arrangements. The Government should ask the DIG to carry out a review of the new training arrangements once they are in place, and the results of this review should be published (paragraph 21).
| The Government intends to continue to liaise with representatives of, and for, disabled people (including DIG) on all aspects of the programme to modernise service delivery…The Government will consider the most effective way in which representatives from the DIG might review training arrangements once they are in place and how the findings of such a review could be made available to interested parties.
| | Pauline Thompson, MBE has been seconded from the Disablement Income Group (DIG) to assist the Benefits Agency in the development, delivery and assessment of an extensive training programme for staff involved in the administration of DLA and AA. Training already delivered includes topics such as interviewing techniques, mental health problems, impairment awareness, visiting the elderly and visiting people who are terminally ill. Further specialist training is planned, in particular in relation to disabled children.
Update 2000
Training for all staff involved in the periodic enquiry and New Claims Trials has been completed. Pauline Thompson has been retained to assist in the impairement awareness training programme for all staff involved in DLA/AA administration which will build upon her previous work and will incorporate contributions from a range of organisations of and representing disabled people.
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| We recommend that priority should be placed on clearing the backlog of appeals arising from the Benefit Integrity Project as soon as possible (paragraph 23)
| The Government has made clear its commitment to a speedy process for all and will continue with the Independent Tribunal Service (ITS) to that end. It if sully aware however that any fast-tracking of one type of appeal can only delay action on others. ITS have special arrangements for appellants who request an expedited hearing on hardship grounds and these can be invoked by the appellant. ITS have indicated that such requests from people affected by the BIP will be treated sympathetically.
| | The Independent Tribunal Service (ITS) has taken action already to shorten the waiting times for appeals and is now making significant inroads into it's backlog of cases. A dual strategy of systematically tackling the backlog and at the same time reducing waiting times for current cases has been put into place. The dual strategy has already paid dividends in terms of performance in the last few months. At the end of February, ITS figures showed the backlog as 70,348 cases, representing almost 50% of the caseload. By the end of May, the backlog had been reduced to 34,194 cases. During April and May, a total of 64,647 cases were cleared. Implementation of the Social Security Act 1998 (changes to decision making and appeals) has meant that the intake of appeals generally for April and May reduced. The ITS has taken full advantage of this opportunity and the cumulative effect of the record clearances and lower intake has been that, by the end of May, the outstanding caseload has fallen to 99,410. The measures ITS are taking will benefit all appellants, including people affected by the BIP.
Update 2000
The Appeals Service (AS), formerly the Independent Tribunal Service (ITS) has taken action to shorten the waiting times for appeals and has made significant inroads into reducing its backlog. A dual strategy of systematically tackling the backlog (on a "first in first out" basis) and at the same time reducing waiting times for current cases was put into place. The aforementioned dual strategy paid dividends in terms of performance and changing the age profile of the caseload so that nearly 80% of the caseload as of August 2000 was under 6 months old.
Between February 1999 and August 2000 the appeals caseload has reduced by around 50%, and over the same period the backlog of cases has gone down from over 70,000 to under 3000.
The Decision Making and Appeals changes that were introduced from 1 June 1999 have meant that the intake of appeals has reduced and the AS has taken full advantage of this opportunity.
The measures AS is taking will benefit all appellants, including people affected by the BIP.
However, for DLA appeals, significant backlogs of work built up in DLA/AA operations in the early part of the year. The backlog has now been cleared, but the increase in the number of decisions made in recent months has led to a short term increase in the level of appeals. Achieving a reduction in the level of appeals outstanding is now our highest priority.
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| We recommend that the Government, in conjunction with the Disability Benefits Forum, should hold discussions with the BMA about the levels of fees for consultation with GPs in connection with DLA (Paragraph 29)
| The practice whereby some GPs charge their patients for such reports is not one that the Government encourages. Nonetheless, it ahs been viewed as a private matter to be resolved by discussion between the doctor and patient. In view of the concern expressed by the Committee, the Department's Chief Medical Adviser will bring this issue to the attention of the British Medical Association (BMA)
| | The Department's Chief Medical Adviser wrote to the Secretary of the British Medical Association as planned
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| Given the continuing high number of life awards, we welcome the Government's intention "to amend the legislation so that the term 'life award' does not appear in the future, once the changes are in place" (paragraph 30)
| A crucial aspect is to improve claimants' awareness of the basis of their award and their understanding of the need to report changes in their circumstances. To aid this awareness the Welfare Reform and Pensions Bill, currently before Parliament, includes a provision to remove the term 'life award' from DLA and AA legislation. This change will help to make it clear to claimants that even long-term awards of benefit are subject to change to adjustment if circumstances change. This change is not intended to affect the practice of making an award for an indefinite period, if that is appropriate: it is intended to clarify current practice. This change is of a wider programme of activity, including the new active case management regime and work on notifications designed to improve the public understanding of the conditions of entitlement to DLA and AA.
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| We recommend that the Government should consider extending the work on take-up of Income Support among pensioners to Disability Living Allowance and that different approaches to take-up should be discussed with the Disability Benefits Forum (paragraph 31)
| The Government is determined to improve the administration of these benefits to ensure that decisions about entitlement are right at the outset and that they remain correct. These are necessary steps that must be taken before decisions can be made about the need for a take-up campaign.
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